It’s the anniversary marking 50 years since hip hop’s beginning will be celebrated in the coming year. What artists, songs, moments and lyrics from the early five decades stick out for you?
DJ Kool Herc threw a back-to-school celebration on 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx and mingled two records to create a continuous breakbeat. This day is now known as the birth of hip-hop.
50 years after its inception, hip-hop, which was thought of as a trend or a threat, is now an industry worth billions of dollars and a global phenomenon that is as readily identifiable as jazz, blues, and rock. Jon Caramanica, a music critic for The New York Times, writes, “Over five decades, hip-hop has grown from a new art form to a culture-defining superpower.”
The Mr. Caramanica goes on to guide the listener through the many eras of hip-hop. He begins with the early period in the Bronx, where none of the early pioneers of the genre would have thought they were helping to lay what he describes as “the foundation for the defining cultural shift.”
50 years ago, however, this scenario seemed unlikely at most. The 1970s saw Bronx Block parties made place to nightclubs, and talk D.J.s created the basis to allow dedicated M.C.s to start taking over. Then, the advent of capitalism sucked out and packaged the element in these events which was the easiest to share that was the rapping.
Then it was time to go racing. In the mid-1980s, hip-hop was a tiny club, but a big business since audiences across the nation were attracted to listen commercially released records from a myriad of New York artists. A new wave of stars that would soon be global were born:
In the meantime, the genre was growing, becoming more popular and unavoidable every year. It evolved into a centrist pop genre and created its own dissidents, including The New York and Los Angeles undergrounds of the 1990s, the progressive indie scene of the 2000s; and finally, the SoundCloud hip-hop of the decade. Over the last 20 years, hip hop has been the source of some of the biggest pop songs of the decade including Drake, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Cardi B -however its patterns are now open for artists from other genres to draw inspiration from. They did and continue to do. Hip-hop was a major connection point for reggaeton, country music and hard rock, for K-pop, and many more.
For students, take the time to read through this text before you let us know:
What is hip-hop to you? What is its role in your daily life? Are you a fan of shows? Do you create beats? Perform raps or write a rap? Has hip-hop culture affected your fashion tastes? (If you’re not a huge hip-hop fan, what other music are you listening to rather?)
What hip-hop artists, songs or lyrics from the last 50 years make you smile? What is your top era?
If someone hasn’t heard of hip-hop or doesn’t even like rap – -What songs do you recommend playing to explain its purpose and significance or make them feel more comfortable? What should be your top hip-hop playlist?
Do any of your teachers ever introduced hip-hop music into their classrooms? If yes, how did they do it? Do you believe it is appropriate to teach hip-hop in every school? Why or why you don’t think so?
In the article ” The Future of Rap Is Female,” Niela Orr a reporter for The Times Magazine, argues that “As their male counterparts turn depressive and paranoid, it’s the women who are having all the fun.” What trends and artists do you believe will shape the hip-hop scene’s future? What are your predictions regarding the next 50 years? Is hip-hop going to be around in the next 50 years?
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Students 13 and older in the United States and Britain, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public and may appear in print.
Find additional student opinion Questions below. Teachers, go through this article to find out how to incorporate these activities in your class.
Jeremy Engle joined The Learning Network as a staff editor in 2018. He joined the network after working for more than a quarter of a century as a humanities in the classroom, documentary-making teacher, professional development developer and curriculum designer, working with teachers and students across the United States.
Writing prompts, free lesson plans, and activities for students that are all inspired by Times journalism.The Lear